Senior Manager, Operations and Governance

About Foundation for Black Communities

The Foundation for Black Communities is Canada’s first-ever philanthropic foundation dedicated to investing directly in Black-led, serving, and focused grassroots, non-profit, and charitable organizations. Foundation for Black Communities exists to ensure every Black person in Canada can thrive and all Black communities have agency in defining their own future. We will invest in change-making, working with Canadian philanthropic, political, and business partners to ensure that Black-led and Black-serving organizations have the sustained resources they need to make a meaningful impact.

À propos de la Fondation pour les communautés noires

La Fondation pour les communautés noires est la toute première fondation philanthropique du Canada à investir directement dans des organismes communautaires caritatifs et à but non lucratif dirigés par des Noirs, au service des Noirs et axés sur les Noirs. La Fondation existe pour veiller à ce que chaque personne noire au Canada puisse s'épanouir et que toutes les communautés noires aient la possibilité de définir leur propre avenir. Nous investirons dans le changement en travaillant avec des partenaires philanthropiques, politiques et commerciaux canadiens pour nous assurer que les organismes dirigés par des Noirs et au service des Noirs disposent des ressources durables dont ils ont besoin pour avoir un effet significatif sur les communautés.

Position Overview

Reporting to the CEO, the Senior Manager, Operations and Governance provides senior-level support across organizational operations, planning, governance, and cross-functional coordination. The role helps translate organizational priorities into clear plans, deliverables, timelines, and follow-up, while supporting effective governance and day-to-day operational systems.

The Senior Manager is responsible for maintaining the organization’s operational plan, tracking key commitments and deadlines, coordinating across internal teams, and identifying operational risks, dependencies, or capacity pressures that may require attention. The role works closely with the CEO, staff, Board leadership, committees, vendors, and external partners to support effective execution and organizational accountability.

This position requires strong project management, governance administration, communication, judgment, discretion, and the ability to keep complex workstreams organized in a dynamic, mission-driven environment.

Key Responsibilities

Organizational Operations and Planning

• Operational planning. Lead the development, maintenance, and monitoring of the organizational operational plan, including deliverables, owners, milestones, timelines, and dependencies.
• Commitment tracking. Maintain an accurate record of key organizational commitments, including grantmaking, partnership, reporting, funder, compliance, and operational obligations.
• Status reporting. Prepare regular updates, dashboards, reports, or briefings that provide the CEO and leadership with a clear view of progress, risks, and upcoming decisions.
• Risk and dependency management. Identify bottlenecks, capacity pressures, interdependencies, and delivery risks early, and bring forward practical options or recommended next steps.

Cross-Functional Coordination and Administrative Operations

• Support the coordination of day-to-day organizational operations, internal processes, workflows, and administrative systems.
• Serve as an operational point of connection across functions such as Community Impact, Finance, IT, Communications, and other teams, helping coordinate shared priorities and information flow.
• Partner with Finance on operational budgeting, purchase orders, invoices, contracts, expense tracking, and related administrative processes, in accordance with organizational policies.
• Coordinate IT support, software access, equipment, and the procurement and maintenance of organizational assets.
• Maintain accurate operational documentation, filing systems, records, policies, and administrative tools with appropriate confidentiality and accessibility.
• Identify practical opportunities to improve systems, workflows, documentation, and internal coordination.

Board and Committee Governance

• Serve as a key staff support for the Board and Board committees, working with the CEO, Board Chair, committee chairs, and relevant staff to support effective governance operations.
• Coordinate Board and committee meeting logistics, including scheduling, agenda preparation, remote or hybrid meeting arrangements, materials preparation, and post-meeting follow-up.
• Lead the preparation, assembly, and timely distribution of Board and committee materials.
• Prepare accurate minutes and maintain organized governance records, resolutions, action items, and related documentation.
• Track Board and committee decisions, commitments, and follow-up items to support timely completion and clear accountability.
• Support onboarding and offboarding for Board and committee members, as well as Board retreats, Annual General Meetings, and special governance events.
• Maintain governance calendars, by-laws, policies, handbooks, and related frameworks, recommending updates or process improvements where required.

Procurement and Vendor Management

• Support procurement processes, including vendor identification, evaluation, onboarding, and coordination.
• Prepare and process purchase orders, supplier documentation, and related records in accordance with internal policies.
• Maintain accurate records of contracts, supplier agreements, procurement decisions, and vendor-related documentation.
• Coordinate with vendors and internal stakeholders to support timely delivery of services, goods, and operational requirements.

Leadership and Team Coordination

• Provide coordination, guidance, and oversight to staff, contractors, vendors, or project contributors involved in operations and governance work, as required.
• Contribute to organizational planning, problem-solving, and process improvement by bringing a practical, systems-oriented perspective to operational and governance matters.
• Represent operations and governance functions professionally with internal and external stakeholders.

Qualifications and Experience

Required

• At least 7 years of progressively responsible experience in operations, project management, governance, board support, nonprofit administration, or a related function.
• Demonstrated experience developing and maintaining operational plans, workplans, project trackers, dashboards, or similar tools used to monitor deliverables, owners, timelines, and risks.
• Experience supporting Boards, committees, or senior governance bodies, including agendas, meeting materials, minutes, action tracking, governance calendars, and records.
• Experience coordinating across functions such as Finance, IT, Communications, programs, partnerships, or administration.
• Strong knowledge of administrative operations, procurement, vendor coordination, document management, and internal process improvement.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to prepare clear materials for executives, Boards, committees, staff, and external partners.
• Strong judgment, discretion, and ability to handle confidential and sensitive information appropriately.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office, project or portfolio tracking tools, remote meeting platforms, and shared document systems.

Preferred

• Post-secondary education in business administration, nonprofit management, public administration, project management, governance, or a related field, or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
• A project management certification such as PMP, PRINCE2, CAPM, or a comparable credential is considered an asset.
• Experience in a nonprofit, charitable, philanthropic, public-sector, or community-serving organization is considered an asset.
• Fluency in both English and French, written and spoken, is deemed an asset.

Competencies and Attributes

• Project management and follow-through: Able to organize complex workstreams, track commitments, close loops, and maintain momentum across multiple priorities.
• Systems thinking: Able to understand how teams, timelines, decisions, and dependencies connect across the organization.
• Governance literacy: Understands how Boards and committees operate and how to support clear, timely, and well-documented governance processes.
• Communication: Able to communicate clearly, professionally, and appropriately with staff, Board members, funders, vendors, partners, and other stakeholders.
• Discretion and judgment: Handles sensitive information with confidentiality and knows when to escalate issues or seek direction.
• Collaboration and influence: Able to work across teams, build trust, and support alignment without relying solely on formal authority.
• Adaptability: Comfortable working in a dynamic, mission-driven environment with evolving priorities.
• Commitment to equity and community-led change: Demonstrates understanding of and commitment to FFBC’s mission and the role philanthropy can play in supporting Black communities in Canada.

Compensation

• $110,000 annualized, pro-rated for the six-month contract term.

How to Apply

To apply, please submit a cover letter and resume through https://ats.rippling.com/ffbc/jobs.

Applications will be received on an ongoing basis until the position is filled. FFBC appreciates the time and effort involved in applying. Only candidates selected for an interview will be contacted.

If you require accommodation during any phase of the hiring process, please notify us as soon as possible. All information received in relation to accommodation requests will be kept confidential.

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